Bollore Logistics Australia Becomes A Global Leader In The Use Of Robotic Process Automation (Rpa/ Ai) To Support Logistics Operation Across The Anz Region

Bolloré Logistics Australia has been at the forefront of technological innovation since they introduced the use of Robotic Process Automation (RPA/AI) to support and optimise existing logistics operations in the ANZ region, becoming the first entity within Bolloré Logistics globally to adopt this technology for the logistics business unit. Use of this technology to automate repetitive admin tasks has reinforced existing business intelligence tools, which has translated to an enhanced customer experience, improved service levels and enabled staff to focus on more complex tasks.

Robotic process automation (RPA/AI) is a software technology that simplifies the repetitive tasks undertaken by robots within a business’ day to day operations. Through the continuous development and improvement of technology, robots can perform some tasks faster and more consistently than people. Maximising these capabilities will also allow businesses more freedom and efficiency in allocating human labour, which in turn will lead to improved output in other areas of the business. We estimate that our RPA/AI solution covers a minimum of 5 FTE’s and potential for this to grow as it develops further; this has been beneficial in allowing us to re-deploy our people to other operational or client facing tasks.

Essentially the role of RPA is to emulate tasks that were previously completed by humans; the software interfaces with applications and systems that are programmed to plan and record the actions that are required to complete tasks.

To make most optimal use of this technology, warehouse data is retrieved using business intelligence tools such as Cognos and Tableau and shared with the robot which is programmed to deliver actionable intelligence. To support current operations, RPA has been used to successfully automate time consuming repetitive processes such as ASN verification, AUPOST address correction, automatic packaging consumption and manual Bill of Lading update in the WMS across multiple customers and sites in the ANZ region.

Bolloré Logistics Australia takes pride in implementing advanced technology to provide the best possible service for customers. In 2019 they introduced a new type of automation by adopting the use of Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMR); this was offered to a new customer due to the usefulness for their business profile, which involves a large number of SKUs with limited pieces of stock for each. We estimate that our AMR solution is capable of covering roughly 10 FTE’s, which in turn allows for more efficient allocation of people involved with handling this customer. The other major benefits of the AMR solution are quick implementation and improved scalability, which translates to a significant increase in productivity by avoiding unnecessary travel for both picking and put away. The introduction of RPA only further continues the emphasis on innovative solutions being developed and utilised by Bolloré Logistics Australia.

“Bolloré Logistics Australia takes pride in implementing advanced technology to provide the best possible service for customers”

Bolloré Logistics Australia has achieved tremendous success in improving customer service through the use of RPA to perform repetitive tasks; this has helped in operational peak management and executing complex tasks to support project implementation. Additionally, the use of RPA has simplified various operational activities including warehouse stock migrations, SKU changeover activities and overnight inventory checks with minimal human intervention. The next direction is to evolve the use of RPA with artificial intelligence and machine learning to achieve even higher standards of operational excellence.